REVIEW: ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Season 5 Episode 5 – Rewind

I should probably preface review by making what might a crazy declaration: Fitz is my absolute favorite Marvel Cinematic Universe character. Now that we got that out of the way, time for this totally unbiased review.

As much fun as I’ve had with S.H.I.E.L.D.’s fun space adventures, this episode was not only a nice break from those but an opportunity to finally get some answers. We learned what happened to Fitz afterward, how he made his way to the shocking ending from last week’s so-so transition episode, and we get a bonus in the return of Lance Hunter(!).

Fitz begins his journey incarcerated by some no-good military goons, hellbent on taking in S.H.I.E.L.D. after the unfortunate shooting of our favorite Colonel Talbot. These specific characters don’t leave much of an impression; the two subordinates come across as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern-like, and their intense superior comes across as a rip-off Captain Janeway. But the episode goes out of its way to display her ruthlessness (shooting her poor Ros and Guild in the head for their failures later), so I get the sense that she is meant to be an important player in future arcs.

Fitz’s stint in prison goes to show how far he’s come through the course of the show. He feels true remorse for his actions in the Framework and is ready to repent for his sins; at the same time, he just wants the comfort of knowing that his beloved Simmons is safe and sound. He mentions his earlier brain trauma, and we are reminded that Fitz has gone through nothing but torture during his tenure as an agent. His attempts to science the shit out of this situation fall flat, but his attempts to get through Hunter through profanity-laden rants in a soccer (ahem, football) magazine eventually pay off six months later.

There was so much to keep track of, and I generally take decent notes while watching these episodes, but instead of writing down the avalanche of details that Enoch unloaded, I ended up writing down my favorite Hunter one-liners (i.e. all of them). Hunter’s departure from the show was a huge loss, because he has an excellent dynamic with pretty much every main character he comes face to face with. I’m assuming that Adrianne Palicki’s commitment to The Orville prevented her participaction (or maybe they’re saving her for later?), but Hunter will do for now as the show adjusts us back to the familiar.

As with his teammates, Fitz is dealing with the baggage he carried from the Framework—out of all of the S.H.I.E.L.D. characters, our poor boy Fitz probably went through the most transformative and traumatic experience. His dark side comes through as he violently threatens Enoch. But as Hunter teaches him, there will be cases where Fitz will have to tap into that darkness to achieve his goals. This is certainly evident by the end of this episode, as Enoch warns him that the now future-bound Fitz will have to go against the worst of the worst in the galaxy to win. And just one look from the excellent Iain de Caestacker foreshadows that he’s ready to do what he needs to.

Welcome to the age of Badass Fitz.

VERDICT

4.5 Ferrets out of 5. This episode was not only informative, but immensely entertaining. The direction of this story arc has been made clear, and I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes next.

ONE-SHOTS

Watching Fitz work out in prison made me think that he would Uncle Iroh his way out of there.

Nice detail of Fitz keeping count with drawings of monkeys.

Loving how goddamn heroic the music cue for Hunter’s entrance was.

Rusty for Best New MCU Character of 2017

Such a smart callback to bring in Robin (daughter of previous Inhuman character Charles) back into the story; so much more makes sense now.

Enoch’s exception of apocalyptic events is like the Reverse Prime Directive.

Release the ferrets.

Fitz going John Woo in the Zephyr (also a welcome return) was dope.

Nice dialogue reference to Empire Strikes Back in Hunter and Fitz’s last moment together.

Apologies to readers for the rushed nature of this review; that’s what happens when I have a part time with crazy hours. Expect a more refined review for the episode two week series from now.

My mission in life is convincing the world that "The Winter Soldier" is one of greatest movies of all time. I studied screenwriting at Carnegie Mellon University, and taught a class about the MCU and its creative influences. I write opinion features and record podcasts about popular culture for my website @BadHaircutProd, I interned for Paste Magazine, and am also writing for Flixist. Secretly hoping to be the next famous "Chris" in the MCU.